Great Mending
- For the Mending of the Clan Tree, see Clan Tree of Cridhe.
| The Great Mending | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mending | |||||
 | |||||
| Information | |||||
| Era | End of Rift Era, start of Mending Era | ||||
| Date | 4500 AR | ||||
| Location |
Dominaria Multiversal | ||||
| Sets | Future Sight | ||||
| Characters | Freyalise, Jeska, Karn, Leshrac, Nicol Bolas, Radha, Teferi, Windgrace | ||||
| Outcome | |||||
| |||||
| Timeline | |||||
| |||||
The Great Mending (or just the Mending) was a process that healed the Multiverse, particularly Dominaria, from damage caused by accumulated time rifts, through the sacrifice of multiple planeswalkers.[1] It caused a fundamental restructuring of the nature of travel between planes of the Multiverse, preventing many types of travel that had formerly been possible; it also rebalanced the power of a planeswalker's spark, permanently diminishing the power of all current and future planeswalkers in the multiverse. From a storytelling and marketing perspective, the Mending was part of an effort by R&D to creatively overhaul Planeswalkers.[2]
History
The Great Mending began when Jeska sealed the last major rift in Otaria in 4500 AR. It caused all remaining fractures to heal, first in Dominaria but then spreading throughout the Multiverse in a chain reaction. It allowed mana to flow freely throughout Dominaria once more, returning life and hope to the dying world. All creatures which had appeared from the past during the Time Spiral crisis returned to their original time.[3] With the last Time Rift closed in the Final Mending,[4] Dominaria's mana flowed back into the land instantaneously, and the world healed and rejuvenated quickly with that infusion of power.[1]
After the Mending, the Multiverse found a new balance with the Planeswalker's spark, with far-reaching consequences. Planeswalkers lost their immortality and godlike powers and much of their additional magic power. For example, they stopped being able to transport other people during a planeswalk. At the same time, all existing planar travel tech also stopped working.[5][6] New tech was possible, but so far the only example seen is the Planar Bridge created by Rashmi on Kaladesh (now Avishkar),[7] which has notable limitations regarding organic matter.
The Mending occurred about 4500 AR. Remarkably, this is around the same time that the Great Aether Boom of Kaladesh occurred.[8]
R&D's motivation
The Mending was part of an effort by R&D, especially the Creative team, to overhaul the planeswalkers. Creative had found it difficult to tell stories about nigh-omnipotent beings; by decreasing the power level of planeswalkers, they hoped to open up better story possibilities and make them more relatable to the audience.[2][9] Toning them down also enabled the new planeswalker card type.[2] This, in turn, allowed planeswalkers to be not only the focus of the storyline but also of brand identity.[10]
In-game references
- Represented in:
- Referred to:
References
- ↑ a b James Wyatt (2018), The Art of Magic: The Gathering - Dominaria. VIZ Media.
- ↑ a b c Mark Rosewater. (September 3, 2007.) "Planeswalking the Walk", magicthegathering.com, Wizards of the Coast. (Internet Archive snapshot)
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (April 03, 2018). "Do these people still exist in current Dominaria or were they thrown back into the past with the mending?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ (2009). Conflux Player's Guide. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Kelly Digges on Twitter
- ↑ Magic Story Podcast: The Mending (May 3, 2018)
- ↑ James Wyatt (January 25, 2017). "Puppets". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ According to Doug Beyer in Magic Story Podcast -- Q&A May 24, 2017
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (January 19, 2015). "Fate-Ful Stories, Part 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Matt Cavotta (September 06, 2007). "The Last Quack". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
